Please Touch Me
by Moonlight Memories
Summary: Due to a spell gone wrong, Justin and Alex can't feel any emotion unless they are in physical contact with one another. If they don't touch, they feel empty, dead. So yeah, getting trapped in a magical diary? Not such a good idea. JALEX
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own this.

A/N: Hope you guys like this.

* * *

"What?! I do _not. You're _the one who does that!" Justin yelled.

Theresa rubbed her temples. When would this childish squabble end? It started a week ago. She wasn't completely sure how it started, but from what she knew, Alex had stolen one of Justin's dol- action figures. Then it progressed to other things. She did not understand how they could stay so angry with each other for such a long period of time. Sure, they had spats before, but Alex eventually forgave Justin and tried to steal something of his or do something that made him upset to make herself feel better. That eventually created another squabble, but for the time in between, there was a lot of peace in their house.

Harper rushed to the basement before anything else could happen.

"Go to your rooms!" Jerry shouted.

His two older children completely ignored him. If anything, they shouted more loudly than ever.

Then, Alex raised her arm as though she was about to hit Justin. At this, something in Jerry snapped. This had never happened before and something had to happen before it escalated.

"Okay, Max," Jerry said. "Grab your wand and repeat after me."

Before her hand could touch her brother, Alex felt the familiar sensation of magic slipping into her body the way a slow wave slips onto the shore. As the feeling subsided, so did her anger towards her brother.

"It's calmus, not calmaas!" Their father screamed.

"What just happened?" Justin asked. There was no anger in his face whatsoever.

"Look, I got tired of your arguments, so I got Max to cast a meditation spell on you two. However, he said the wrong thing, so I don't know if it worked properly. Did it work?" he asked curiously, tilting his head slightly in curiosity.

"I'm not angry anymore…." Alex said. "But I don't feel anything at all. I don't even feel slightly upset, like I usually do," she continued.

"It's a calming spell. It should wear off in less than five minutes. Hopefully, you won't be angry with each other when it ends," Jerry said, nodding intelligently. " They'll probably start fighting again soon, so we should enjoy it while it lasts," he told Theresa.

"Oh. I feel like I should be angry or something," Alex answered dully.

"Will the undo dust work?" Justin asked.

"I don't think so. It doesn't really work for emotion spells," Jerry replied.

Alex sank into the couch lifelessly. Justin stared at his watch, waiting for five minutes to pass. It felt like all the emotions that he lost were sliding into his feet, making them feel like lead. There was nothing left in his heart. There should be something else, he knew that, but for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what.

Five minutes ticked by, leaving him oddly empty. Lazily, he made his way to the couch slowly. He stared at the screen, reaching out to grab the remote by habit. He did not actually mind what they were watching as he didn't feel anything at all. As his fingers grazed the smooth ones belonging to his sister, he felt an urge to grab it out of her hands and change the channel. The weather forecast was on. However, he realised that his sister wanted to change the channel to. Her eyes were alight with determination and her pink lips were set in a hard line.

The spell must have worn off.

Before he had time to react, she snatched the remote out of his hands. However, as soon as she did that, they both felt empty again. They turned away from each other and continued watching the show quietly.

He was so sure that the spell had worn off. Oh well. They could continue watching the show until it wore off. He didn't know what else he could do with himself.

On the screen, a mime tried to create a wall between himself and the world.

The minutes ticked away.

"Has the spell worn off?" Jerry asked.

"No," Justin answered.

"Weird, half an hour has passed. It probably has something to do with Max mispronouncing the spell… you two, go down to the lair and try to find out about the spell Max cast on you. You should probably try to find a counter spell while you're at it," Jerry said.

Alex and Justin stood up obediently and walked to the lair. Jerry would almost have killed for such an obedient daughter.

He was just about to tell Theresa how lucky they were that Max messed up the spell when he saw Alex's glassy eyes. He shuddered. Those eyes did not belong to his baby girl. She looked as though she was dead. What had he done? Noting this, he went straight up to his room to read the magic books that he had placed in his room. As he walked up, he couldn't help feeling the icy steps under his feet. He didn't like reading much more than Alex did, but they had to find a cure for this!

Alex and Justin reached out to open the door simultaneously. Their hands met on the door. At this moment, the television set erupted with noise. His children turned their heads around quickly, sourcing out the noise. Then, Alex laughed as the mime fell down. Amusement! Bingo! Had the spell worn off? Alex looked at Justin, as though she were wondering if he found it amusing. However, Justin merely looked sympathetic. Alex frowned. Great, the spell must have worn off. He could see that they were going to break out the insults. That was fine. It was great to have them back to the way they were.

However, the second Alex withdrew her hand and placed it on her hip, the irritation went out of her face as though someone had flicked a switch within her. Justin's sympathy vanished as well.

That was… weird. Perhaps the spell meant to stop them from getting angry. Still, this was too creepy.

He didn't like seeing the glassy look on their facesl.

Like robots, they reached out for the door again. As the door was flung open, Alex's hand slammed onto Justin's. For a fraction of a second, Justin's face contorted in anger. However, it slid back into its zombie like state as Alex walked down into the lair. This was bad. He would never hear the end of it from Theresa if this was not fixed by tomorrow. He knew that she would only use this situation to make a case against rampant magic. That would have been fine with him, but she would probably drag him into it as well. He rushed up the stairs as fast as his legs could carry him.

After a while, Justin began to feel hungry. He almost welcomed the sensation. At least it was not as bad as the emptiness within him. However, the hunger began to distract him from the research. He looked at Alex. She was working rather hard on it. Deep inside him, he knew it was strange to see his sister so studious.

He walked briskly up the stairs and took an apple out of the fridge.

"What are you doing out here?" Theresa asked. "Didn't your father ask you to look for a counter-spell?"

"I was hungry."

Theresa looked at him carefully. "Okay. Why don't you go downstairs and make your sister is really doing her research?"

Justin thought about his sister, her face slightly scrunched up, fully concentrating on the books she was reading.

"I'm sure she's doing her share of the research," he replied mechanically.

"If you're sure," Theresa answered doubtfully. "Here," she continued, shoving a sandwich into his hands. "Take this to your sister, just in case she gets hungry."

"Okay."

Then, he turned around and walked down the stairs of the lair quietly. He looked at his sister. She was definitely concentrating on the book. He shrugged. Something about the sight still bothered him slightly.

Still, since they were supposed to be calm, perhaps she did not get bored as easily.

"Here," he said, handing her the sandwich.

"Thanks," she replied. Their fingers touched as he handed her the sandwich. There was a very evident electric current running up and down her body. All of a sudden, she felt very bored. She wanted to jump around. Dance. Kiss her older brother. And not necessarily in that order. She'd do anything besides sitting there quietly, reading. _Reading_. What was she doing?!

"The spell, do you think it wore off?" Alex asked.

"I don't know," he answered. He was feeling a sudden curiosity, though. It must have worn off. She looked deep in thought. Then, a look of frustration took root in her face. She grabbed the sandwixh.

All of a sudden, the curiosity slid off him. She no longer looked frustrated.

He thought back to the other situations where they both felt something. Something clicked in his mind. Quickly, he grabbed her hand. Again, the electricity jumped off his hand into her body. It was the most pleasant feeling in the world. It burned her, it delighted her, destroyed her. She dutifully shrugs it off. It's no big deal, she is used to this feeling. She cannot help loving the wrong person.

"I get it!" he exclaimed excitedly, his voice full of life.

"Get what?" she asks, annoyed.

"I finally understand why we randomly start feeling stuff and then feel empty again," Justin answerd. "Watch this."

He let go of her. Again, they didn't feel anything. Then, he reached out to touch her again. She seems annoyed. She asks him what the point of what they're doing. He lets go. Again, she stops feeling annoyance whatsoever. This time, he sees understanding creep across her face. She reaches out to touch him again.

"So, we have to touch if we want to feel anything?" Alex asked.

"Pretty much."

"Alright, make sure you don't let go of me," Alex said.

"Huh?" Justin questioned, a faint tinge of pink emerging slowly from under his cheeks.

Alex rolled her eyes. "If you let go of my hand, I won't feel angry. If I don't feel angry, I won't try to get even with Max. Anyway, I don't know about you, but I don't particularly like the empty feeling we have all the time. It's really depressing."

"_Oh_. Yeah, I don't like it much either. Does this mean that we'll have to hold onto each other's hand all the time?"

"There's no way I'm going to hold _your_ hand in school. I'd rather suffer that depressing emptiness, thanks," Alex replied, throwing him a disgusted look. I'm so going to kill Max," she continued.

"You know, I'm usually not a big fan of violence, but this time, count me in."

Alex smiled coldly.

"Do you want to do the evil laugh?" Justin asked enthusiastically.

"Justin, you ruined the moment!"

* * *

A/N: What do you think? Should I continue? Do review and tell me! By the way, if I continue, the story's rating will probably change as it approaches the end.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I know this isn't the most interesting chapter in the world, but it's a necessary chapter.

* * *

"Did you see Max's face when he realised that his arm wasn't an arm?" Alex asked, laughing.

"I know," Justin replied, his eyes shining with amusement. "I feel a little guilty about it, though."

"It'll wear off."

"That's not the point. We shouldn't use magic to-"

"Okay, then think about this: he is the reason why we have to remain in constant contact with one another," Alex said, drawing phantom circles around their entwined hands. "It'll be a miracle if we don't kill each other by tomorrow," she continued. She watched as Justin's face hardened.

"Still feel any guilt?"

"Just a bit," Justin answered.

Alex sighed.

"Okay, so we have one last thing to worry about. It will look odd if we went to school hand-in-hand. You won't be able to go to _your_ classes and _I _won't be able to skip _mine_. Luckily for us, I've thought of a solution. Firstly, we have to tell mum and dad to send us to our rooms straight after school. So we'll probably have to tell them the truth. No matter how disgusting it is," Alex said. She looked away.

"How does going to our rooms help?"

"We'll stick a note on our doors. Anyway, after a while we'll probably go and touch each other out of habit," Alex commented. "You have some of those papers that have a sticky part at the back, right?"

"You mean post-it notes? Sure, I have some."

"Okay. Let's get them."

They walked in Justin's room. Justin quickly warned Alex not to touch anything. He opened a drawer and handed Alex a stack of post-it notes.

"You should really hide the things that you don't want me to find in drawers instead of leaving them around the room. Then, you can put useless stuff like this around the room," Alex commented, holding up the stack of post-it notes for emphasis.

Justin sighed deeply. "Just write on that note already."

Alex did so.

"You spelt 'touch' wrongly!" Justin said. His eyes were alight with the unknown emotion they always held when he argued with her.

"Shut up," Alex replied, quickly correcting the note.

"There," Alex announced proudly. She stuck it on her door carefully and hit it once, just in case. She then said a spell to make sure that it would not fall off the door by accident. This led Justin to complain that she should not be using magic and that he did not want her using magic on the one that was going onto his door. She shrugged and agreed. He sure loved lecturing her.

They stuck the post-it note on Justin's door.

"Now we have to tell mum and dad to send us to our rooms after school," Justin mumbled. "That shouldn't be too hard. They're used to sending you straight to your room after school anyway."

Alex glared.

They walked towards their parents in silence.

"Has the spell worn off?" Jerry asked.

"No, but I worked out that if I touch Alex," Justin started, frowning slightly at the insinuation, "We can feel. If we don't, we can't feel anything at all," he concluded, studying his father's face carefully for a hint of disapproval. Instead, he only saw slight guilt and complete trust. It was him after all. He was not exactly known for lying. If it were Alex, he was sure that his father would say that she was lying. Still, it was a little odd to hold on to her all the time. Plus, his palms had started to become sweaty ages ago. However, Alex hadn't mentioned it. Sweaty palms sometimes ran in families. Perhaps Alex had the same problem. If so, that would explain the fact that Alex had not insulted him yet.

"So _I_ found the perfect solution. Justin and I will settle this on our own, even though it's really your fault. All you'll have to do is to send us to our rooms straight after we reach home from school," Alex continued. "And I'd like an increase in my allowance as an apology."

Jerry stared at her.

"Please daddy? I'm stuck with him all day. Well, besides school-"

"Wait a minute. Besides school?"

"We can't exactly go to the same classrooms," Alex explained.

"Okay. Go on."

"So I think I deserve some extra money to make up for it. Besides, the empty feeling isn't very pleasant," Alex said, pouting.

"Oh, all right," Jerry replied, relenting.

"Thanks, daddy," Alex smiled.

Justin sighed. "I'm going off to sleep," he told them. Gently, he tried (and failed) to tug his hand free of hers.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

He stared into her eyes, fully intending to deliver a lecture. However, when their eyes met, he seemed to melt into them. It felt like drowning. He could hardly breathe while he was staring into the chocolate puddles. His first instinct was to pull away, but the longer he looked into her eyes, the more he was convinced that staring into her eyes forever was not a bad idea. He could feel himself slowly being drawn to her. Their faces moved closer and closer and closer. His mouth went dry.

"Justin?" Alex asked uncertainly.

"Sorry, it's probably a side effect of the potion," Justin mumbled, knowing that it was not. Since when had she become so beautiful?

"Oh, okay."

"Anyway, shouldn't we let go now?" he asked.

"Did you mishear me? I said that we will keep touching each other until we set off for school."

"What about baths and stuff like that?"

"I won't look, I promise," Alex answered quickly, crossing her fingers behind her back.

Justin sighed. "Fine."

He wondered if he could get away with looking at his sister while she was taking a bath. Then, he hit his head, trying to get the taboo thoughts out of his head. She was his sister. There was going to be a smart beautiful woman out there just for him, and it wasn't going to be Alex.

No matter how much he wanted that.

Together, they walked up to Alex's room. They were hand in hand, their feet falling on each step at nearly the same time. It felt like there was a bond linking them together. Something beyond spells, beyond his taboo feelings, beyond everything. Justin tried not to feel happy about that.

Carefully, they lay on her bed. Since their bodies were touching, Alex took the opportunity to let go off his hand and wipe it on his clothes. He would have protested, but he didn't really care.

"Alex," he murmured. His eyes were about to close.

"Hmm?" she asked, making herself comfortable. She used his chest as a pillow.

"This is nice," he said, before he could stop himself.

"Yeah. It's been ages since we did this," Alex agreed. "You're very warm," she added as an afterthought.

"Thanks."

With that, Alex drifted off to sleep. However, Justin could feel her breasts against his chest. Little shudders of desire shot through him even as he tried to ignore the feeling. He tried to shift her gently but she clung on tightly. Tenderly, he placed his arms around her and stared into her peaceful face, wondering if what he felt for her was love. He always assumed that he would grow out of these feelings. However, the feelings had only intensified as time passed. They seemed to surface from deep inside him.

No, it couldn't be love. She was his sister.

He struggled with them.

Why did she have to be so beautiful? More importantly, why did he always feel so comfortable around her? Even when they were arguing, some part of him was always at peace.

He liked looking at her. He liked knowing that she truly existed. Yet, he hated the way he felt. He hated the fact that he needed her.

Back to the issue with their…. um… body parts…

It looked like he wasn't going to sleep very well tonight. Oh well, he would get used to it.

What he would not get used to were these insane feelings.

He couldn't love her. He just couldn't.

* * *

A/N: There:)

There's something I need your help with. I'm thinking of writing another Jalex(as I do all the time). Summary:So Alex messes up a spell. What's new? She turns into a siren and accidentally invokes the siren's curse on Justin, and to stop the pain, he has to sleep with girls. Wait. What?!

What do you guys think? There won't be any sex scenes in it. Unless it's one between Justin and Alex.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N:Enjoy!

* * *

Alex grabbed Justin's hand firmly.

Slowly, the way a lazy snake slithers up a tree branch, their emotions began to rise to the surface again. Then her body shuddered in anticipation. Gently, she pressed her feelings down. She felt a little relieved. Before leaving for school that day, she had been worried that they'd never feel anything again. It was odd though. The second she had let go, she didn't feel anything again. It felt like death itself. Emotionless. Empty. She was merely an animal, a thing that lived for the sake of living. However, when she held his hand again, she was horrified by it. Life was meant to be enjoyed. It wasn't supposed to be work.

Still, she had to admit that she did learn a lot in the last few days. Yeah, taking notes just because the teacher told her to wasn't exactly what she usually did, but at least she knew she'd get a good grade.

That empty self of hers had told Harper everything.

They had tried to keep this from Harper because well, it was weird. Weirder than usual, in any case. Whenever they came down to dinner, Harper would shoot them weird looks but Alex usually convinced Harper that they were playing with magical glue. And then, she insulted Justin. However, when she became the person who did not care about embarrassment, she was apparently completely okay with telling Harper the truth.

"Look Harper, I'm sorry for lying to you. It's just too weird, even for us. I have to be attached to him," Alex complained.

" Is that so bad?"Justin asked.

"No, not really. I like the part where we joined hands to—"Alex started to say. However, she was interrupted by loud laughter.

"Joined hands! Hahaha!"

Alex glared at her brother and her best friend. "As I was trying to say, I liked joining forces with you to prank Max," Alex finished amidst their giggles. Why did they have to be so weird? It wasn't _that_ funny.

Then again, they did enjoy silent movies.

"So anyway, you've got to cover for me when I stare all glassy eyed at the teachers, taking down everything they says."

"You know, this could be a good thing," Harper noted.

"A good thing? I'm forced to hold hands with him all the time!"

"Wow. You guys are almost like a couple," Harper said. Alex and Justin both tried not to blush while they each declared their disgust in their 'own unique ways'.

"Eww!" They both said, at the same time.

"Alright, Justin and I have to go back to our research so we can stop holding onto each other. Do me a favour, Justin. Let go of my hand when we have to start reading those things. At least then I won't feel too bored."

"No way. I actually enjoy books."

Alex gagged. "Whatever, let's go."

* * *

"I wonder if emotion potions would work?" Justin mumbled. Alex sat beside him, briefly looking at a long list of spells and checking for the right name. It was so boring. She stared at her brother. His eyes focused on the book, his kissable lips forming words that made little or no sound. He was definitely more interesting than the book she had in front of her.

She pressed her lips to his cheek, tasting the salty tang of sweat.

"What are you doing?" Justin asked, blushing.

"I was bored," Alex replied, shrugging. The faint pink blush on his cheeks had bloomed into a bright red.

"It's probably a side effect of the potion," Alex said. She then turned her attention back to the book. Justin sighed, a little disappointed and very relieved.

"Do you think emotion potions could cure us?" Justin asked.

"I don't know. Let's take the anger potion you and dad tried," Alex replied.

"Okay."

Justin led Alex to potions.

"You know, this reminds me of the time when I was six. We used to hold hands all the time," Alex said.

"Yeah," Justin agreed.

"Wait," Alex said. "We'd better take precautions."

She yanked out the hair tie holding her shoulder length hair up and tried to tie their hands together. After a lot of complaints from Justin –Was he even a man?- she stopped trying to tie their wrists together since it obviously would not stretch that much. Instead, she tied two of her fingers together with two of Justin's, ignoring his annoyance.

Drinking the potion felt like an indirect kiss. As she drank then potion, she shivered slightly.

"Yeah, it's working. I'm beginning to feel angry."

"Now we should pull our fingers apart," Alex said. As they did so, the nothingness slid into them again, stealing into their souls like a careful thief.

They relaxed. The hair tie snapped their fingers back together. Instantly, they felt anger course through their veins again, running through every muscle in their bodies. They stayed angry at each other silently, afraid of what they might let out.

After a few minutes, the anger disappeared.

"Yeah, I don't think that worked too well," Justin said. He shrugged, then led her back to the books.

"I'm feeling warm," Alex complained. "Let's go and take a bath."

"No!" Justin protested, remembering the bath they had together the day before. It took every single bit of determination (and a lot of magic) for him to stop looking at his sister. Even then, their skin brushed against each other rather often. It was hell. It was paradise. It made him get harder than he had ever been. So he jumped out of the bathtub they were in and rushed to get a towel to cover himself. He could have sworn that he heard her mocking laughter as he did so, but when he turned around, she was washing her long, smooth legs her free hand, her face calm and relaxed. He felt even harder than before, especially when she met his gaze and blushed.

Okay, so she probably hadn't laughed.

Probably. It _was_ Alex, though, so who knew?

Then again, there was the whole incest thing, so she probably would have been horrified.

Either way, baths with Alex didn't make him any cleaner.

"Oh look! There's this really odd book between the spellbooks ," Alex exclaimed excitedly, breaking him out of his trance. Alex wondered what it was. To be honest, she didn't really care, not as long as it could get her out of the boring books. Justin glanced at it, not excited in the least. He examined the thin book.

"I think it's someone's magical diary," He told her.

"Oh good! Let's go in!"

"What? No! Alex, we have to find a counter-spell."

She decided not to listen to him. Quickly, she flipped the pages. Within seconds, she and Justin were transported to an odd world. It looked like they were in a dark castle made of stone. A colourful carpet ran down the pathway like a waterfall. Some paintings were scattered around the walls. They were all pictures of the same two people, Alex realised, startled. One was young man with black hair and enchanting silver eyes. The other person was a young woman that looked a lot like her. However, light brown hair danced around her shoulders. It resembled her father's hair colour.

"That's creepy," Alex mumbled.

"You think? We should probably go back," Justin stated.

"Annabella? Is that you?"

"Justin, did you say something?" Alex asked, trembling.

"N-No… did you?" Justin asked.

Suddenly, someone began to walk down the stairs. There was something familiar about the man. As her eyes fell upon a painting, she realised why she recognised him. It was the man in the painting! What was with this place? Alex clung to Justin, afraid of what might happen.

"Annabella, you have finally returned to me," the young man declared, kissing Alex's hand.

"Who's Annabella?" Alex asked, pulling herself closer to Justin. "My name is Alex."

"Annabella, do you not remember me? It is I, Paolo," the young man said, searching Alex's eyes for any sign of recognition. Annabella. The name seemed to ring a bell in Justin's head, but he was sure that he had never met a girl named Annabella. In any case, they had to get out of here before anything happened.

"Alex, let's go," Justin said, tugging Alex closer to him.

"Yeah, I'm with you on that one," Alex answered.

"No! We have finally been reunited! I will not let you leave again!" Paolo yelled. Alex glanced at Justin. He had his 'I told you so' face on. Quickly, they grabbed their wands and began to cast the spell.

"I will not let you leave again," Paolo repeated. In a second, their wands were in his hands. "Stay with me forever, my love."

"What happened?" Alex questioned, panicking.

"I don't know. We have to ask the person who drew him," Justin whispered. "The person probably made him into a wizard or something."

"Oh. Great," Alex whispered in reply.

"Who are you?" Paolo asked, his silver eyes fixed on Justin.

"He's my brother, Justin," Alex answered cautiously. She looked at Paolo. There was a faint suspicion at the edges of his eyes, but he seemed to believe her, more or less.

"He can leave. You can't," Paolo told them.

"I'm not going to leave Alex behind!" Justin exclaimed indignantly. His voice rose a notch higher than it should. He squeezed Alex's hand in an attempt to comfort her.

"Yes you will," Alex replied, smiling sadly. She was not going to trap Justin in here with her just because of her own mistake. He did not deserve to be stuck here. He had already fulfilled his brotherly responsibilities by warning her of the dangers. He was not going to stay here with her forever.

How did that old saying go again? If you love someone, let them go. Of course, this was not quite the same thing. Still, she couldn't cause him to be stuck here with her. She knew that she could be selfish sometimes, but this was the person she loved and would not ruin his life like this. _And if they were meant to be yours, they'd come back,_ she remembered. Well, he was not meant to be hers, but it was fine. She would let him go anyway. He deserved that much.

She snatched her hand away from Justin's. Instantly, they both felt very empty.

"_Literarium Terrarium,_" Paolo called. Then, Justin found himself tumbling out of the book. Strangely, his wand appeared beside him.

Justin glanced at his watch. Eleven o'clock. He walked up the stairs slowly and made his way to bed.

He knew that he should inform his father, but it didn't matter. He could easily do that tomorrow. For now, he should go to sleep.

He closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep. However, despite the spell, a subtle sadness had begun to creep upon him. It began to wind itself around his heart, and then washed itself over his body.

He closed his eyes, determined to ignore it.

* * *

A/N: Review please? I do love reviews XD


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Here's the next chapter:)

* * *

The slight sadness bothered him no end. It was the only emotional feeling that he could really feel. Odd, because he knew very well that the spell had not worn off yet, and that he should not be feeling any emotion. It tortured him. He found himself sitting upright, trying not to think of his sister's chocolate brown eyes. He thought of her long, thick eyelashes. He thought of her face as she told him that he was not going to stay with her. For some reason, all these things made the diluted sadness grow a little more.

He felt as though he had lost something important.

Realising that he would not be able to sleep, he stood up. He closed the door behind him. With this extra force, the note that Alex pasted on his door became unstuck. It floated down like an autumn leaf, then skied under his bed.

He walked quickly down to the lair. Then, he went into the book.

Upon falling into the book -wow, his butt still hurt a little- he began to look for Alex, using the pain to try and distract himself from the slight sadness which had begun to grow more and more painful.

After walking for ten minutes (and getting hopelessly lost), Justin heard the echo of Paolo's voice. He remembered the man's dress style, his odd manner of speaking. He was probably a baron or something. This was probably a medieval castle. Quickly he followed the voice. Then, he heard his sister's softer, more feminine voice. He chased her voice.

Before Paolo's surprised eyes, he grabbed Alex's hand. They shuddered as their emotions were returned to them.

"Justin," Alex hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't know. I mean, I let go of your hands, didn't I? Even though I let go of your hands, I still couldn't help feeling a little bit sad," Justin said.

"What are you talking about?" she asked. However, her cheeks were slightly red. She was touched.

"Look. I couldn't make myself leave you here," Justin replied, his voice a low whisper. "Now listen. He loves you, right? He's probably someone from the medieval times, so if we tell him that we're betrothed, he might let you go."

"What's 'betrothed'?" she whispered back.

Paolo was staring at him irritably.

"Engaged," Justin whispered back.

"What?" she asked, her eyes impossibly wide. "Eww!" she whispered. Her face had contorted into her patented look of disgust, the skin between the eyebrows wrinkled and her eyes looking downwards in an expression of disgust.

"Do you want to get out of here or not?" Justin hissed.

"_Fine._"

"Come, Annabella," Paolo said, gesturing to Alex.

"I keep telling you, my name is Alex!"

"Of course, my love," Paolo said, offering Alex his hand.

"Stop," Justin said. "She isn't Annabella. Her name is Alex, and she is my betrothed."

"Did you not say that he was your brother, Annabella?" Paolo asked, instantly suspicious. Again, he stared deeply into her eyes, searching for some signs of a lie.

"I was worried that you'd hurt him. Yeah, that's it," Alex said. "Sorry, I'm just not your Annabella."

"How can this be? You look exactly like her," Paolo said, staring keenly at Alex. "Of course, your hair is not the same beautiful shade. Still, if one makes allowances for that, you look exactly like her," Paolo continued. At this, Alex glared at him. She liked the colour of her hair, thank you very much.

"Alex and I could probably find out about this Annabella, if you wish," Justin said.

"Do you love him?" Paolo asked.

"Yes," Alex replied. There was no hesitation in her voice at all.

"Wait. I cannot believe this. My love, if he truly is your betrothed…" Paolo said, as though he was trying to do something that he hated very much. "If so, my love, kiss him as a proof of your love for each other," Paolo finished softly. His eyes searched hers yet again. His own eyes were full of passion.

Before Justin could change his mind, Alex wrapped her free hand around his neck.

Justin blushed.

However, he, too, knew how important this was. He looked deep into his sister's eyes, speaking directly to her soul. Then he bent down and touched her lips chastely with his. However, Alex knew that Paolo would not be fooled with that simple gesture. In any case, this was an excuse to kiss her brother. She jumped on it.

Carefully, she licked his lips. She felt as though she was the hunter trying not to scare her prey away. Sparks hopped down their lips, into their neck and then ran down their bodies. Justin's eyes were wide open. Obviously, he had not expected this. Hesitantly, he raised his free hand to her cheek, then opened his mouth. The second their tongues touched, Justin flushed. The feeling was so good but so horribly wrong that Justin wanted to pull away. Alex closed her eyes, leaning deeper into his body. Justin's body burned as he returned her kiss. Was something so wrong supposed to feel this good?

However, his thoughts were stripped away as her hand began to move under his clothes. He forced his tongue into her mouth and delighted in the soft sound she made when he did so.

So good…

Just before he ran out of air, Alex pulled away. Her hair was dishevelled, her cheeks red. He felt proud of this. However, his morals had returned to him and he knew exactly how wrong it was.

How could he have enjoyed the kiss?

He glanced at his sister. She was the one who had kissed him first. She wanted it.

He looked at Paolo. The man looked horribly saddened. Soundlessly, he returned them their wands. He did not look at them again. Instead, he looked out at the window where the skies were always blue.

"She was forced to marry a man she did not love," Paolo suddenly said. His voice was low and he sounded like he was about to cry.

"Come on, let's get out of here before he changes his mind," Justin persuaded. However, Alex looked curious.

"Who?" Alex asked. "Annabella?"

"Yes," Paolo replied.

"Why?" Alex asked, curious and a little outraged at the fate of the mysterious woman.

"He was rich," Paolo replied. "Her family needed the money."

"So they just _sold_ her?" Alex asked.

"Yes," Paolo replied. "In her despair, my Annabella drew me to look exactly like the man she loved. She made me a wizard and begged me to keep her here forever. She made me a baron, because she wished that he too would become one. She wanted to be with him, to be with the person who looked like me."

"I did not manage to protect her," Paolo continued, his voice cracking. "I swore that I would not repeat my mistake. I can still see her face as she was forced out of here. She was crying, desperately calling for me to save her. And yet, I was unable to do so. For that, I deserve to die."

"No one can die here," Paolo whispered. "It is a place where all of us are freed from death."

"I wish that I were dead," Paolo murmured.

"Goodbye, lady Alex. I hope that you will escape my love's fate."

"Paolo.." Alex murmured, her voice softening in sympathy.

"Come on, Alex. _Literarium Terrarium,_" Justin said. Then, they tumbled away from the dark castle and the sad man.

"I guess love can be more important than your family, sometimes," Alex murmured. Her eyes were filled with tears. She looked at Justin. However, as soon as their eyes met, he turned away.

"Let's go to sleep. I'll lie on the ground," Justin said, refusing to meet her eyes.

* * *

"You saw a portrait of a woman who looked like you?" Jerry asked.

"It was a painting. She looked very similar to me, but her hair was brownish. Kind of like your hair, dad."

"It could have been a picture of your great-grandmother…"Jerry said. "Did she look sad? She was always sad. She never wanted to marry your great-grandfather, you know."

"Was her name Annabella?" Alex asked, everything clicking into place perfectly.

"Yes. How did you know?" Jerry asked.

"There was a caption under the painting," Alex replied.

"Where did you see this picture?"

"Umm… I forgot."

Jerry shot her a disbelieving glance. "If you say so, honey."

"Justin, come with me to the lair," Alex said. Justin followed her. Odd, he hadn't been speaking to her since The Kiss. Oh well, he was always a stickler for the rules. She should probably give him time to adjust to it. At least she knew that he loved her too. She saw it in his eyes.

Still, he was not making it easy to her. These two days of silence felt horrible.

She opened the book and went in.

"Paolo?"

"Alex," Paolo greeted.

"I think Annabella was my great-grandmother," Alex admitted. "I just came here to tell you that."

Paolo smiled sadly. "Did she… did she manage to escape her fate?"

"Yes," Alex lied.

At this, Paolo smiled a little more brightly. "I am glad."

"_Literarium Terrarium,_"Alex murmured.

As soon as she tumbled out, she took out her pencil and began to draw. Justin looked on briefly, curious. However, he did not say a word to her.

"I'm drawing Annabella," she said. As expected, Justin did not reply.

"I'd like to give them a happily ever after. Even if it is just in the book."

"What's the point?! They'd never be able to live their happily ever after," Justin said.

"I'm doing it because I'm sure Annabella would have liked that. I'm sure Paolo, both real and fake, would have liked that, too," Alex said.

"They don't exist anymore, _do _they? They're so stupid. These things never end happily ever after," Justin said. "It's real life."

"Even if that's true, this is a book, Justin," Alex replied.

"No, it isn't. This is real life, Alex, and real life isn't about 'happily ever after',"Justin said. Then, taking a deep breath, he continued, "I'm going out with Nina tomorrow."

"You mean, like a friendly meeting?" Alex asked, her eyes pleading.

"At the end of our two-person date, I'm going to kiss her."

* * *

A/N: Sorry to do this to you guys^^' On a brighter note, I'm nearly done with the first chapter of the story I mentioned in chapter 2, so you guys will be free to express your disgust/joy at the story once I'm done with that:) Assuming I get my lazy ass to work, you guys will probably get it in a couple of hours.

If you guys are confused, when Justin says 'It's real life', he's talking about their situation. Just poke the review button if you have any questions:)


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Yay! We got to the fifth chapter!

* * *

"What? Justin, you love me," Alex said. Her heart ached. "Besides, have you forgotten about our emotions?"

"Alex, you're my sister. Of course I love you."

"You know what I mean."

"Look. I really like Nina. If I have to go on a date with her without feeling anything, I will."

"You kissed me," Alex murmured accusingly. She had finished the drawing and was about to put it away. She looked at the book. In it, Annabella and Paolo were having a happy reunion.

"Only because I had to. If I stopped, Paolo would not have let you go. What were you _thinking_, Alex? There wasn't a need go that far!" Justin cried out, choosing the blame her instead of accepting the facts. "Your hand was…" he tried to look disgusted. However, the memory was turning him on.

"Did you… really feel that way?" Alex asked in an uncharacteristically small voice.

"You don't really want me to answer that, do you?" Justin asked coldly.

"I'm sorry," Alex whispered.

"We shouldn't touch anymore," Justin said. "Maybe that will help the potion to wear off."

Justin expected a huge outcry. However, Alex only nodded and agreed softly. She closed her eyes for what seemed like forever. Then, without saying a word, she tightened her hold his hand and led him upstairs. The coldness of the air bit into their bodies and somehow managed to find its was into their hearts. They climbed all the way to his room. She led him to his room.

"It's gone," she said, talking about both the post-it note and their relationship all at once.

She then led him to her room. She stood in front of the post-it note for what seemed like ages. Then, she murmured the counter spell, ripped up the note and threw the tiny pieces out the window.

"There," she whispered. "On the count of three, we'll let go."

Justin stared at her. He had not thought that she would actually go through with it. Still, this was the right thing to do.

"Alex?" Justin asked, slightly uncertain.

Alex smiled. He could see the tears that were about to fall from her eyes. Still, she remained strong. The moment she said, three, she closed her eyes, as if trying to brace herself against something. Then, she took her hand back and turned away.

The door shut in front of his face.

He stared at the door, once again feeling the subtle sadness that had consumed him before. Then, he walked away quietly.

* * *

Justin kissed Nina gently. There were butterflies, no sparks, no sensation of burning. Even if Alex was touching him right now, he doubted that there would be any of those things.

Alex stared at them through the window in the kitchen. Something about the scene bothered her. Something nagged at the very core of her soul. It was a form sadness, she realised with a start. Strange. She still didn't feel much else. Oh well, it was easy to ignore. If she didn't think about it, it would no bother her.

After making herself a sandwich, she walked up to her room.

There was moisture in her eyes. She touched them.

Tears.

Justin looked at his sister. She seemed to be pushing something away from her face. The fingertip of her index finger was extraordinarily shiny. Tears? Odd. He knew that the spell hadn't worn off yet, and from the look on Alex's face as she made a backwards glance, he knew that she was still under the effects of the spell.

He shrugged. At first, it had been hard to think properly. Now, it seemed much easier to think about things.

Oh well. He offered to walk Nina home. However, she declined. Lazily, he walked to his room. He should probably do some research, but he did need some rest.

As soon as his head touched the pillow, he fell asleep.

He dreamed that he was sitting on a cloud. Alex was sitting on a cloud beside him. Suddenly, the cloud Alex was on abruptly gave way. Alex began to fall. Her face was empty even as she fell. Horrified, he reached out a hand and tried to catch her, even though she was out of his reach.

"Alex!" he cried out. Upon hearing her name, Alex smiled faintly, but continued to fall downwards without a sound.

"ALEX!!!" he screamed.

His scream jolted him awake. The nightmare had been so real! The horror, the terror continued to pump through his veins while he sweated profusely. Then, they ebbed away into nothingness.

"Weird,"he whispered to himself.

He got out of bed and nearly slipped on a piece of paper on his foot. He pulled it off his foot and looked at it.

'Touch Alex's arm,' it said.

Dimly, he remembered adding the word arm because he was afraid that he'd touch her in some other places. He really did not want to think about that at the moment.

Either way, He really should not touch Alex. He knew it was bad. However, he did crave his emotions. He'd like to feel something. Anything. He knew that this empty feeling was wrong. There was a reason why he wanted to live. It was probably a dark haired, brown eyes reason. Alright, he would obey the note and touch his sister's arm again. Just once.

Just once.

Once wouldn't hurt, would it?

He walked to her room, opened the door and touched Alex's arm. Wave after wave of pain washed over them. Justin tightened his grip on Alex's arm and looked into her face. The few tears that she had shed before had suddenly grew into a flood. The pain in her face was evident. She seemed to be struggling with her tears. Alex never cried in front of him. She probably hated herself right then.

His own tears began to flow. He pulled her into his arms despite her protests. She kicked him. She pushed him away. She hit him. She pinched him. Still, he would not let go of her.

"What are you doing??" she asked through her tears.

"I don't _know_!" Justin replied, pulling her closer to him. "I just want to hug you."

"You're… You're not helping," Alex said, crying.

"I need to feel something. Don't be selfish, Alex," Justin murmured.

"_I'm_ selfish? You're selfish! I'm really like you and you know that. If you keep holding my hand, I will never fall be myself again. _Justin_…" Alex murmured.

"It was driving me insane," Justin said. "The guilt was driving me insane. Alex, you're important to me. You are the only person who makes me feel. I mean that both literally and as a romantic line. I care about you way more than I should. I don't really want to become like Paolo and Annabella. I don't want to live my entire life pining for you. You mean too much to me. Even before this spell was cast, I couldn't really see you as my little sister. You know what? Every time I say that I wish you weren't my sister, that's what I really mean! Forgive me, Alex."

"Do you remember why we got angry with each other in the first place?" Alex asked, instead of answering Justin's question. However, she did not pull away from his hug.

"Yeah, you stole my action figures."

"Dolls," Alex corrected, smiling faintly. "But whatever. It was not about the dolls, not really. I was angry. Some time before that, Juliet dumped you because she said you didn't love her enough. You couldn't moping. You wouldn't smile. At first I pitied you. Then, I started to get angrier and angrier with you. When I reached my limit, I took your dolls."

"So you took them because you were jealous?' he asked. When he spoke, his body vibrated a little. Alex pulled closer, delighting in the fact that she was in his arms.

"I wasn't jealous! And that wasn't the whole reason. I also took them because…"

"Because?" Justin prompted.

"Because I knew I couldn't have you. I wanted something of yours to hold on to while I cried."

"You cried?"

"A little," Alex replies, her face hidden in his neck.

"I'm sorry, Justin."

"I'm sorry, too. I kept thinking that I was the only one who was suffering, but in reality, you were suffering too," Justin murmured. "I guess I _was_ selfish."

Gently, he pulled away slightly. There was confusion in her face. He then dipped his head and crashed his lips onto hers. This time, he did not wait for her tongue. His own tongue darted out and slid into her warm mouth. Their tongues danced. Delicious shudders of pleasure ran down his body. Little sparks of electricity jumped their way into their bodies. Their hands began to roam each other's body freely. He swore that he stopped breathing when she drew him even closer, making their bodies fit one another perfectly.

Without realising it, their eyes shut.

"Alex," he murmured as he tried to catch his breath. "I'm really sorry. I don't care anymore. I'll just bear with the guilt because that's easier than the pain of making you cry."

"Okay," she said, blinking her pretty eyes at him.

"So… are we okay?"

"Yeah. We're okay. Is this whole kissing thing okay?"

Justin nodded. "I like you," he said, blushing. "We just can't… go overboard."

Alex stared at him, a little surprised. Hmm… 'Overboard' for Justin probably meant any touching below the waistline. Alex shrugged. So they couldn't go overboard?

"Pssh. Like that's going to happen," Alex said to herself softly. However, Alex decided to agree with Justin for the time being. She didn't want him changing his mind! For now, they wouldn't go overboard. For now.

"Let's watch some television," Alex said.

"Shouldn't we search for a cure first?" Justin asked.

"Later. All this research is giving me a huge headache," Alex said. "_Please_, Justin?" Alex asked, pouting. Justin felt himself drowning in her eyes again.

"Okay," Justin answered. In truth, he hadn't even processed the full meaning of his words before he agreed. Still, Alex was smiling brightly at him. Oh dear. This relationship was just going to be yet another way for her to exploit him, wasn't it? Oh well. She was important.

However, as they watched the show, they realised that something was wrong.

"Justin?" Alex asked as the coyote on the screen fell short of catching the road runner yet again. "There's something wrong with me. I know that the cartoon should be way more funny than it seems to me."

"That's impossible, Alex, our hands are touching."

"I should be laughing," Alex said, feeling slightly nervous. However, if she were feeling the full extent of her emotions, she should really be freaking out right now. Not good. "Justin, I should be laughing right now. If not, I should be feeling really, really scared. But I'm not. I'm just slightly amused and a little bit nervous. Something's wrong. What's happening to me?"

Justin didn't answer. He stared blankly at her. There was nothing in his eyes. After what seemed like ages, he shook his head, as if to clear the cobwebs in his mind. He looked into her eyes nervously.

"You're right. Something's wrong."

* * *

A/N: I hope you liked this chapter. Review! If I'm not wrong, there's one last chapter to go. As for the next chapter of The Siren's Breath, I'm waiting for someont to get back to me, but whether or not that person does get back to me, the next chapter should be up in 2 days.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Yay! We've reached our final chapter!

**Dedication: **This chapter is dedicated to (I've tried to put this in order of how important you guys are, but failed)** YourDreamer138** for all her support and all her long, beautiful reviews, **dramionefanobviously** for reviewing all my fics and never asking for anything in return, **CyWiz** for being awesome, my sister **You're My Everything** for being forced (or so she says) to review all my fics, **Emeycia** for reading everything and giving me feedback, **S. F Card **as a thank you for beta-ing The Siren's Breath, **Baku Babe** for supporting the story. This is also dedicated to everyone who has reviewed this.

Thank you! You guys give me to motivation to write!

* * *

"Maybe it would help if we increase the surface area of our skin contact," Justin said, blushing at the Very Wrong Thoughts that were running through his (rather unclean) mind at the moment.

"Sure! " Alex said, knowing that Justin was thinking about the exact same things as she was. "Maybe if I did this?" she asked innocently, sliding her free hand under his blouse. She pretended not to notice the heat that had started to build up in his body. Her body had started to feel warmer too.

"Alex?' he asked, sounding as though he was strangled.

"Hey, it works!" Alex exclaimed, ecstatic. She drummed her fingers on his side.

"_Alex_," he moaned. He wished that he could take that… sound back. Not even magic could make that sound half-way right. He tried to reel in his hormones and tell her off. That plan wasn't really working.

"Alex, anyone could walk in," Justin said. His breathing was rather ragged.

"Guess who doesn't care?" Alex asked, allowing her fingers to rub his skin. Justin breathed in sharply. He closed his eyes, trying to push away the Very Wrong Thoughts in his mind. Then, he opened his eyes and glared at her. However, he did not really push her away, so Alex did not remove her hand.

"You're such a dork. I bet you do this to your dolls all the time," Alex said. She removed her other hand from his grip and slid that under his shirt, too.

"They're action-" Justin replied automatically. However, her fingers brushed against his nipple just as he was about to complete his sentence. He gasped. "action figures. I don't…_oh…_ I don't do this _Alex_! to my action figures," he finished. Where had she learned to do that? He looked at his sister. A light pink colour was dusted upon her face. She looked so desirable.

No, he had to stop this. He pulled her hands away, keeping their skins touching. Then, he drew her into a hug.

It was only marginally better, seeing as their bodies were still blazing with heat.

"If we do this, we can feel," Justin said. He didn't have to look at her to know that she was pouting.

"You're no fun," She whispered. Her breath on his neck did not exactly make things easier. He hugged her even more tightly. He didn't want to let go of her. It felt as though he would lose everything if he let go of her now.

"Alex, things aren't always about fun. We can't do… whatever it is that you're thinking about right now. We're living with mum and dad, Alex. Even if we were not doing that, this will… mum and dad will… They'd never forgive us, Alex. And only one of us can keep our powers, even if we do this, we can't be together for very long. And love. What if you fell in love with someone else?"

"Are you afraid that you'd fall in love with someone else?" she asks. Her eyes are unreadable.

"I won't ever fall in love with someone else," Justin answered. He did not even need time to think about it.

"Good," she says. "Because I would never do that, either. I'm in love with you, you dork," she continues, poking him on the chest. He doesn't take the bait. "If it makes you feel better, I will admit that I've never felt this way for anyone else. And I will never feel like this again. Ever. "

Justin realised that he was smiling. These were the words that he had always longed to hear.

"Not even Dean?"

"I don't like him half as much as I like you," she replied. She had truly liked him at first, but then she fell in love with her brother and had to use him to fall out of love with Justin.

"I'm in love with you too," he replied.

Alex sighed into his neck.

He knew that the moment right then was a perfect picture of bliss. He felt blissful, too. Well, if one didn't count the electrical sparks dancing around his body, anyway.

Justin smiled. "Right now, I'd be okay if the spell was never lifted."

Again, Alex felt it: The sensation of magic sliding into her. Then, it slid off her completely. It felt as though she had run a bath and all the magic had slid off with the water.

There was only one way to see if the spell was lifted. Gently, she extricated herself from Justin. He looked hurt.

"Alex?" he asked, worried that she might have had a change of heart.

"Justin, I think the spell is broken!"

"Oh," he replied quietly.

"Aren't you happy?"

"Sure, but I don't have an excuse to touch you anymore."

"We're the only ones who know that the spell is broken. If you don't tell anyone and neither do I, we can continue to touch each other," Alex said, smiling. She willed him to be happy too.

"By the way, I found out what spell it is. I've kept it from you because I didn't want to be sad."

"What is it?"

"It's a variant of the sleeping beauty spell. She slept until she was kissed awake, remember? In the spell, it is our emotions that sleep. The book said that there were no known ways of breaking the spell, but I guess we just found one."

"What do you think broke the spell?" Justin asked.

"I'm going to guess here. I think it was what you said about being okay if the spell wasn't lifted," Alex answered.

Justin laughed. "That's stupid. No wonder no one found out how to lift the spell."

"Nah. I'm guessing that the people who managed to lift the spell didn't want to tell anyone. I mean, this hand-holding thing becomes second nature really fast," Alex said, grabbing his hand firmly. "I mean to do more than hand-holding with you, though."

"You mean, like kissing?"

"No, I'm talking about things that you would label 'overboard'. Things that don't involve that shirt or those jeans… or any form of clothing, really."

"Are you sure that you want to go that far?" Justin asked.

"I don't want to give you a chance to change your mind."

Justin smiled. "Alex, if we do this… you have to be ready for everything that comes along."

He looked into her eyes. They weren't crystal balls, but he could have sworn that he was looking at their beautiful future as he did so.

"I've always been ready, Justin."

* * *

A/N: Before you guys ask about the lack of an M scene, please hear me out! *goes to hide behind the sofa* I couldn't make myself write one, but you guys are free to imagine... and if all else fails, I'm sure The Siren's Breath will have a M scene eventually. If you don't want to wait, read my fic, Midnight Desires? XD


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